September 15, 2003

Stay of Execution

The local paper ran an AP story with this headline: "Israel ignores outrage at its threat to remove Palestinian leader." It should have read: "Media ignore outrages committed against Israel by Palestinian leader."

As usual, Charles Johnson at Little Green Footballs is on top of things, compiling these stories this weekend:

"I came here to defend President Arafat against the occupiers who are killing us every day. I'm prepared to make a big sacrifice. I'm prepared to go to the Jews myself and to kill them wherever they are just as they killed us and destroyed us," she said.

This is exactly the option we, the United States, chose for Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and everyone directly associated with them. But as the same article indicates, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Israel should not be allowed that option.

He said that if Arafat was either exiled or killed, "I think you can anticipate that there would be rage throughout the Arab world, the Muslim world and in many other parts of the world."

"The United States does not support either the elimination of him or the exile of Mr Arafat...the Israeli government knows that," Powell said.

Israel backed off Monday from threats to kill Yasser Arafat, while the incoming Palestinian prime minister ceded control over many Cabinet appointments to Arafat's Fatah party despite Israeli demands that the veteran Palestinian leader be stripped of authority.